Packaging molten soap



Feb. 25, 936. R, H, POT-f5 y 2,031,853

. PACKAGING MOLTEN SOAP Filed April 24, 1933 Tru/@112271,

Patented Feb. 25, V1936 PATENT OFFICE PACKAGING MOLTEN ySIOAP Ralph H. Potts, Chicago, lll., assignor to Armour and Company, Chicago, lll., a corporation of Illinois Appucauonnpru 24, 1933, serial No. 667,569

1 claims. (ci. 226-93) The present invention relates to an improved method of commercially packaging soaps which are liquid when hot and which become solid when cold. Such soaps are ordinarily cooled and caused 5 to set to a hard condition in the factory, molded or cut into cake or 4bar form, wrapped and then sold to the trade.

My invention is characterized by the fact that the hot liquid soap is flowed directly from the soap kettle or crutcher by way of suitable filling machines into' foldable paper cartons, lined or unlined, and therein subjected to chilling to supercially harden or congeal the soap toA an extent adequate to maintain the shape in the carton, when properly supported, leaving ultimate setting and hardening throughout to take place solely on the dealers shelves, thus eliminating timeconsuming, wasteful, operations of manufacture, assuring uniform 'distribution of the filler 'and conserving volatile ingredients such as perfumes.

My improved method reduces the time of manufacture from the crutcher to shipment by more than 99%, that is to say, from a week or ten day's to a matter of minutes. Thereby is reduced al-v most to a Vanishing point the labor cost, investment, floor space for coolingand drying, cutting, molding and rehandling of scrap. The cost of producing the soap practically ends with the crutcher according to my method, whereas under former practice the manufacture of the product; after the crutcher stage consumed many days.l

In order that the relation of the present invention to the soap making art may be readily apprebiated, a brief rsum is in order of the pro- 5 cedure which has been practically universal in the art of soap manufacture for generations.

- There are two general classes of soaps, milled soap Aand. framed soap, of which toilet and laundry soaps are respectively typical. lnasmuch as this invention does not have to do with milled soap, a detailed description of that method of production is' omitted.

In the production of soap by framing the meat soap is pumped from the kettles into crutchers or mixing kettles where various fillers are incorporated, such as sodium silicate and soda ash, with perfumes Where used. The liquid mass is then run into large built-up frames with removable sides, each a capacity of 1300 pounds. In the frames the soap is allowed to stand for from four to six days to allow the contents to cool and .set sulciently to permit the sides of the frame to be removed. Thereafter the soap mass is allowed to stand another three to five days to permit further cooling and setting throughout.y The soap block is then, by means of a slabbing machine, sliced into slabs about four feet long by fifteen inches wide and of a thickness corresponding to the size of cake desired.l The slabs are then transferred to a cutting machine for transverse and longitudinal cutting into cakes. The still soft cakes are then placed on racks in a. drying chamber where they are skin dried by moving warm air, after which the cakes can be pressed in dies, ready for wrapping.

Incident to framing and cutting there is usually from 30% to 40% waste and scrap which must be remelted and reworked, with a 4loss of the original filling ingredients. Moreover, a disadvantage incident to the framing of soap is the tendency of the filler ingred.ents to settle to the lower part of the mass and to work to the surface, presenting a mottled appearance, wherefore the resultant cakes of soap are not uniform as to .filler composition and the mottled exterior entails much scrap.

The time consumption, door space, labor, investment and waste have been recognized as formidable disadvantages of to overcome them such as small frames to facilitate cooling, water-cooled frames to save time, individual cake or bar frames, extrusion of the soap into chilled brine, individual molds for chilling the soap before packaging, etc. None of these expedients have been found practicable or have been commercially adopted. Considerations of waste, expense, labor, investment and unfltness for mass production have caused their abandonment and all soap manufacturers are today employing the old method of framing, notwithstanding its recognized disadvantages, for the reason that none of the proposed changes in method have been found to be operable in large scale soap manufacture.

According to my invention the soap is run from the crutcher into a suitable'fllling machine. It is then fiowed into foldable paper cartons, each of a size to contain one cake or bar of soap. The cartons are closed either by hand or by a suitable machine and are then superficially and quickly chilled by passing them through a refrigerating channel whereby the exterior of each filled carton is sufficiently chilled to cause superficial cong'ealiug, setting and hardening of the contents. During such superficial chilling the sides ofthe fllled carton are supported against deformation as by the walls of the refrigerating channel or other external lsupport. The still soft but supercially hardened filled, cartons are laundry soap manufacture and various devices have been tried 2 1 then arranged in such juxtaposition that theymutually support each other, as by snug packing upon a shelf or in a shipping case and the final hardening and setting throughout takes place after packing for shipment. r

The liquid soap having been transferred directlyl from the crutcher into the cartons, the filler ingredients are uniformly distributed through each cake and the perfume has no opportunity to escape. 'I'he cakes of soap reach the dealer in fresh, sanitary and attractive condition. The soap ,cake having first been chilled on the exterior, it is impossible for the ingredients to work to the surface to cause a mottled appearance. Warping, 'which is common to unconfined partially hardened soap cakes allowed to cure on the shelf of the dealer, is effectually prevented.

Not only is the soap as it reaches the consumr muchbetter in appearance and quality than the soap produced by the old framing method'but all the losses due to scrap and waste incident to framing, s labbing and slicing is avoided and the ocr space during the weeks required for storage during the cooling and hardening in the frames is practically eliminated, inasmuch as the soap is superlcially chilled and packed in facilitate an understanding of the improved method a diagrammatic illustration f means employed for carrying out the same is set forth `in the accompanying drawing, wherein the soap crutcher is indicated atl, the contents of which are by means of the pump 2 conveyed to the filling machine 3 and by it introduced in measured quantity to the open cartons 4 supplied by the forming device 5 or from other source. When filled the cartons pass the carton-closing device 6 and thence to the belt conveyor 1 by which they are conveyed through the double wall channel 8 rto the packing table 9. The channel 8 is refrigerated by brine or other suitable low tem- .perature medium introduced to the inter-wall space at I0 and withdrawn at l'. The mechanical means thus diagrammatically shown is illustrative only of the principle embodied and not indicative of' the structural nature of the instrumentalities employed in practicing the invention. "J

I claim:

1. The method of packaging soap which consists in flowing the soap while in a hot liquid con dition into commercial cartons, superficially Achilling to effect surface hardening only, and so packing that the filled cartons will mutually support-each other against deformation while hardening throughout.

2. The method ofgpackaging soap which consists in flowing the soap while in a' hot liquid conventing escape of the volatile ingredients.

'dition into commercial cartons, subjectingl the lled cartons to low temperature refrigeration sufficiently to merely surface harden the vsamewhile supporting the filled carton against deformation and arranging the filled surface-hardened cartons in mutual juxtaposition in laterally conned groups.

3. The method of treating soap to reduce-. ex pense of manufacture and preserve uniformity 0f product which consists in flowing the soap while in a hot liquid condition into commercial unit cartons, and superiicially chilling the filled cartons whereby to shorten the time of solidiflcation and thus prevent matters in suspension from Working to the surface, and thereafter laterally confining a group of the still soft but supercially hardened filled cartons in such juxtaposition that they mutually support each other in shape during final complete hardening.

4. 'I'he method of treating freshly m'ade soap containing filler ingredients in suspension which consists in flowing the hot liquid soap into commercial 'cake-molding cartons,'a-nd subjecting Ythe filled cartons with their contents to superiicial refrigeration whereby to prevent working of the filler particles to the surface, and thereafter laterally confining a group of the still soft but superficially hardened filled cartons in such juxtaposition that they mutually support each other in shape during final complete hardening.

5. The method of producing commercial soap cakes of uniformfsurface appearance from hot liquid soap containing filler ingredients. in suspensionfwhich consists in flowing the hot liquid "soapkinto individual commercial cartons, and

quickly chilling the filled cartons to surfaceharden the contents whereby to prevent the filler ingredients from separating out. from the interior and affecting the exterior appearance of the cake, and thereafter laterally confining a group of the still soft but superiicially hardened filled cartons in such juxtaposition that they mutually support each other in shape during final complete hardening.

6. The method of treating freshly made soap containingjvolatile ingredients which consists in flowing the hot liquid soap into commercial unit cartons, closing theA cartons, subjecting the filled cartons with their contents to refrigeration ata low temperature to effect quick surface'hardening only, and packing in juxtaposition to afford mutual support while slowly cooling throughout,

thus preserving the shape of the units and preface hardening only, and then packing'in juxtaposition to afford mutual support while slowly cooling throughout, thus preserving the shape of the cake units and preventing escape of the volatile ingredients and the workngof the insoluble ingredients to the surface.

' RALPH H. PO'I'IS. 

